Can we allow a customer to open a business account and style it:

John Doe
Business Account

He's not using a DBA or anything?

You can ask Mr. Doe whether he operates his business under his own name or a fictitious ("DBA") name. But if he can operate the business legally as an individual, he can use his own name if he wishes.

A trade name certificate is required in our county and we do have in our account opening procedures that a certificate is require. However, the problem is we have numerous customers that start a side business and ask to open a small business account separate from their consumer account but do not have a certificate. Example how account would be set up: Joe Smith, dba Smith's Handy Man. In the case where the customer's business is so small that they don't intend to get a certificate, how should it be handled? Is there another way to title the account, such as Joe Smith, Smith Handy Man?

This is governed by the banks policy (possibly in the CIP) and/or state law. If for sole proprietors you require a trade name certificate but allow exceptions with a sole prop that use the individuals legal name (first and last) in the title of the business then you could set the account up that way.

See what your county says about sole props that use the customers legal name.

In the case where the customer's business is so small that they don't intend to get a certificate,

You can't have your cake and eat it to. If they want to operate as a business, they need to jump through the appropriate hoops. You have established your procedures for a reason. If you have a customer that doesn't want to play by your rules, send them down the street. If a sole prop. can't bother to go get a trade name certificate, do you really want someone like that at the bank in the first place.